Tracking an airbag

ABSTRACT

A system of tracking an airbag, comprising a server, a parts database communicatively coupled to the server, and a number of user devices communicatively coupled to the server in which the server collects data associated with the airbag and in which the system receives and updates status data associated with the airbag. A method of tracking an airbag, comprising collecting data associated with a specific airbag, storing the collected data on a parts database, receiving updated airbag status data, and providing the collected data and status data to a user.

BACKGROUND

Airbags provide valuable lifesaving capabilities to a vehicle. In caseswhere a collision in a vehicle would cause head trauma to the driver, anairbag can significantly, if not completely, reduce the external andinternal injuries to a driver. The development of these airbag deviceshave increased to include a number of different types of airbags in asingle car including driver-side airbags, passenger-side airbags,side-seat airbags, and a number of curtain airbags.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings illustrate various examples of the principlesdescribed herein and are a part of the specification. The examples donot limit the scope of the claims.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a system for tracking an airbag accordingto one example of principles described herein.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a number of graphical user interface pagespresented to a user of the system according to one examples of theprinciples described herein.

FIGS. 3-9 is a diagram showing a number of graphical user interfacepages presented to a user of the system such as a dealer according toone example of the principles described herein.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a method of tracking an airbag accordingto one example of principles described herein.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an account details page presented to a userof the system according to one example of the principles describedherein.

Throughout the drawings, identical reference numbers designate similar,but not necessarily identical, elements.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As briefly noted above, any single vehicle may have any number ofairbags installed to prevent significant injuries to a number ofoccupants of the vehicle. However, when a crash does occur, the airbagsmay be subjected to stricter scrutiny by a number of parties associatedwith the vehicle. Some of these interested parties may include the ownerof the vehicle, a potential purchaser of the vehicle, an insurer of thevehicle, a manufacturer of the vehicle, a vehicle repairman, a cardealership, law enforcement officials, airbag and auto parts recyclers,and the original manufacturer of the airbags installed in the vehicle.

For example, a dealership or vehicle manufacturer may be interested inreplacing a number of airbags in a vehicle. Replacement of these airbagsmay be in the form of a product recall and may be initiated by thevehicle manufacturer or dealership on behalf of the manufacturer. Theproduct recall of the airbags may be the result of a discovered productdefect or safety issue associated with the airbag. Where such a productrecall exists, it may be beneficial for the dealership or manufacturerto know which vehicles comprise the recalled airbags, which of thevehicles have been subjected to the recall, and where or whether therecalled bags are destroyed. The present system and method may providesuch entities with the ability to track any airbag subject to a recall.

Additionally, the owner of a vehicle may wish to have, for example, adeployed airbag replaced. After a crash, for example, the owner of thevehicle can see that the deployed bags have now served their purpose andare to be removed and replaced. However, the owner may not realize thatany undeployed airbags may, in fact, be defective. These airbags mayalso need to be replaced. The present system and method may provide anowner with additional knowledge about the airbags in his vehicle as wellas advice/instructions from an insurance provider on what must happenwith all of the airbags in the vehicle.

A similar concern may arise for the insurer of the vehicle as well. Insome instances, the insurance company that is insuring the vehicle maywish to notify the owner that both the deployed and undeployed airbagswill have to be replaced before a certain level of insurance isguaranteed by the insurer. In some instances, insurance may not beprovided to the owner of the vehicle until the vehicle is repaired withall installed airbags replaced. Knowledge of what type and which airbagsare present in the vehicle may better inform the insurance company ofhow best to insure the owner of the vehicle. The present system andmethod may also provide the insurance provider with safeguards toprotect the owner of the vehicle from potential harm due toinappropriately installed airbags. Still further, the present system andmethod may provide the insurer with the ability to document when therepairs were not made thereby shielding them from potential insuranceclaims should the vehicle be involved in another collision.

It may be convenient for an insurance company to be able to check onwhich airbags are replaced by a repairman in a shop. Specifically, itmay be in the best interest for an insurance company to prevent fraud bymonitoring if any and what types of airbags are being replaced in avehicle. If a vehicle repairman incorrectly or maliciously installs aknown defective airbag and a person is injured in an accident because ofthat installation, the insurance company may be required to pay more tocover the damages than otherwise should be paid. Using the system andmethod described here, the insurance company may be provided withadditional documentation suggesting that the correct airbag was notinstalled or that the repairman had somehow committed fraud. Theadditional information may be provided to the insurance company when,for example, a defective, deployed, or recalled airbag is being used toreplace an airbag in a vehicle the insurance company is currentlyinsuring, an agent within the insurance company may receive an email,text, phone call or other notification that the bad has been scanned.The information may further include the location where the bad is beingreplaced at as well as the VIN of the vehicle. Additionally, a user ofthe one of the number of user devices (110-1 through 110-5) attemptingto input information regarding the association of a defective, deployed,or recalled airbag to a specific vehicle, the system will alert the userof the nature of the airbag and will further provide information as towhy the replacement of an airbag with the defective, deployed, orrecalled airbag is inappropriate.

To the manufacturer of the airbag, the information retrieved by thepresent system and method provides them with information concerning theeffectiveness of their airbags. Additionally, information may also beprovided documentation to the manufacturer regarding the installationand use of the airbag throughout the lifetime of the airbag.

During the manufacturing process, the manufacturer of the airbag may usethe present system and method to document the particulars of the airbag.In some examples described herein, the “creation” date of the airbag maybe generated and the new airbag may be made available to consumers suchas vehicle manufacturers or after market purchasers.

Law enforcement agencies also have an interest in reducing occurrencesof fraud in the community. The present system and method may allowinvestigators the ability to scan the identification code of any airbagto retrieve its particular information and history. This may be done todetermine if the bag had been sold on the black market or if someoneassociated with the history of the airbag has attempted or has committedfraud.

A recycler of airbags may also benefit from the below described systemand method. An airbag recycler may be paid by the number of airbagsreported as being destroyed. This may benefit a number of entities suchas the airbag manufacturer, the insurance company, and the vehiclemanufacturer. Each of these entities may pay an additional amount ofmoney to know that each defective or deployed airbag has been destroyed.With this knowledge, each of these entities may be further assured that,due to their relationship with the vehicle, they will not be subject topotential litigation should those airbags remain in commerce or in thevehicle.

It may be also be convenient for a number of these entities mentionedabove to be able to monitor which family of airbags is related to anygiven vehicle. Where any single vehicle comprises any number of airbagsthose airbags have a familiar relationship amongst each of them.Additionally, where any single vehicle comprises any number of airbags,any single airbag can be traced from the manufacture of the airbag tothe car manufacturer, through a body shop and to a disposal site. Thisprovides information to all participants as to the location and theentire life history of the airbag thereby providing to the OEM, andpotentially others involved, a confirmation that any specific airbag hasbeen marked as defective or deployed and thus sent to be destroyed. Inaddition, it would be beneficial to those involved to have confirmationthat any specific airbag has been destroyed and thereby taken out of thestream of commerce. This may additionally have the benefit of preventingthe sale and consumption of black-market airbags.

The present application therefore describes a system of tracking anairbag, comprising a server, a parts database communicatively coupled tothe server, and a number of user devices communicatively coupled to theserver in which the server collects data associated with the airbag andin which the system receives and updates status data associated with theairbag.

The present application further describes a method of tracking anairbag, comprising collecting data associated with a specific airbag,storing the collected data on a parts database, receiving updated airbagstatus data, and providing the collected data and status data to a user.

Still further, the present specification describes a computer programproduct for tracking an airbag, the computer program product comprisinga computer readable storage medium comprising computer usable programcode embodied therewith, the computer usable program code comprisingcomputer usable program code to, when executed by a processor, collectdata associated with a specific airbag; computer usable program code to,when executed by a processor, store the collected data on a partsdatabase; computer usable program code to, when executed by a processor,receive updated airbag status data; and computer usable program code to,when executed by a processor, provide the collected data and status datato a user.

In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerousspecific details are set forth in order to provide a thoroughunderstanding of the present systems and methods. It will be apparent,however, to one skilled in the art that the present apparatus, systemsand methods may be practiced without these specific details. Referencein the specification to “an example” or similar language indicates thata particular feature, structure, or characteristic described inconnection with that example is included as described, but may not beincluded in other examples.

In the present specification and in the appended claims, the term “user”is meant to be understood broadly as any person or entity engage withthe creation, selling, installation, or destruction of a commodity. Inone example presented in the present specification the actor may be amanufacturer, installer, seller, consumer, or destroyer of airbags.Throughout the description an example of a user may include a dealer, abody shop owner or repairman, a law enforcement officer, an insuranceagent or entity, a member of the public, a recycler of airbags, apackager of airbags, an original equipment manufacturer, or a supplierof originally manufactured equipment, among others.

Additionally, in the present specification and in the appended claims,the term “collected data” is meant to be understood broadly as dataassociated with the characteristics of an airbag. In one example, thecollected data may comprise the family of airbags the particular airbagbelongs to, the vehicle the airbag is installed in, the manufacturingdate of the airbag, the barcode associated with the airbag, the serialnumber associated with the airbag, the manufacturer of the airbag, themanufacturing date of the airbag, and the destruction date of theairbag, among others. In another example, the collected data does notinclude the status of the airbag.

Further, in the present specification and in the appended claims, theterm “status data” is meant to be understood broadly as data associatedwith the status of an airbag. In one example the status data maycomprise a “packaged” status, a “delivered” status, an “installed”status, a “damaged” status, a “deployed” status, and a “destroyed”status, among others.

Still further, as used in the present specification and in the appendedclaims, the term “a number of” or similar language is meant to beunderstood broadly as any positive number comprising 1 to infinity; zeronot being a number, but the absence of a number.

Even further, as used in the present specification and in the appendedclaims, the term “network” is meant to be understood broadly as anysystem of resources such as appliances, computer, and storage devices,that are connected virtually or physically. In one example, a networkmay be at least two computers communicatively coupled together. Inanother example, a network may comprise a larger number of computingdevices and may be operated over the Internet.

Turning now to FIG. 1, a system (100) for tracking an airbag is shown.The system (100) may include a server (105) communicatively coupled to anumber of user devices (110-1 through 110-5). The server (105) may becommunicatively coupled to the number of user devices (110-1 through110-5) through a network (115). The network (115) may comprise a wiredor wireless connection between two or more computing devices and maytherefore comprise a LAN line, a WAN line, a Bluetooth connection, and awireless internet connection, among others. Additionally, the network(115) may be implemented over an internet, the world-wide web, anintranet or the Internet. In one example, the individual number of userdevices (110-1 through 110-5) may use an internet connection to gainaccess to the server (105).

The server (105) may be a computing device comprising a processor (120),a data storage device (125), and a user interface (135). The datastorage device (125) stores data such as executable computer readableprogram code (130) that is executed by the processor (120) or otherprocessing device. As will be discussed, the data storage device (125)may specifically store a number of applications that the processor (120)executes to implement at least the functionality described herein. Theserver (105) may be accessed by the number of user devices (110-1through 110-5) using a web hosting service that allows a number of usersto make access a website associated with the server in order to accessthe services provided therein. In another example, the services providedby the server (105) and parts database (140) may be implemented on acloud network.

The data storage device (125) may include various types of memorymodules, including volatile and nonvolatile memory. For example, thedata storage device (125) of the present example includes Random AccessMemory (RAM), Read Only Memory (ROM), and Hard Disk Drive (HDD) memory.Many other types of memory may also be utilized, and the presentspecification contemplates the use of many varying type(s) of memory inthe data storage device (125) as may suit a particular application ofthe principles described herein. In certain examples, different types ofmemory in the data storage device (125) may be used for different datastorage needs. For example, in certain examples the processor (120) mayboot from Read Only Memory (ROM), maintain nonvolatile storage in theHard Disk Drive (HDD) memory, and execute program code stored in RandomAccess Memory (RAM).

Generally, the data storage device (125) may comprise a computerreadable storage medium. For example, the data storage device (125) maybe, but not limited to, an apparatus, system, or device implementingelectronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, orsemiconductor mechanisms or any suitable combination of the foregoing.More specific examples of the computer readable storage medium mayinclude, for example, the following: an electrical connection having anumber of wires, a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, a randomaccess memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmableread-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), a portable compact discread-only memory (CD-ROM), an optical storage device, a magnetic storagedevice, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. In the context ofthis document, a computer readable storage medium may be any tangiblemedium that can contain, or store a program for use by or in connectionwith an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device. In anotherexample, a computer readable storage medium may be any non-transitorymedium that can contain, or store a program for use by or in connectionwith an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device.

The server user interface (135) may be any device or computer readableprogram code capable of allow a user to interact with the server (105).Specifically the user interface (135) may include a keyboard, a screen,a mouse or any other hardware that allows a user to interact with theexecuted computer readable program code (130) described to accomplishthe methods described herein. The user interface (135) may furthercomprise computer readable program code (130) that, when executed by theprocessor (120), provides an interactive graphical user interface withwhich the user may enter data and cause data to be received. In thisexample, the services provided to each user of the system (100) may beimplemented over a cloud computing system and/or web-based hostedplatform that uses a distributed computing system over the network (115)such that the program may be ran on a number of connected computers.

The server (105) may also be communicatively coupled to a parts database(140). The parts database (140) may include data regarding various partsand items associated with the system. The parts database (140) may be arelational database management system (RDBMS) such as MySQL®, SQLserver, or Oracle database developed by Oracle Corporation. The partsdatabase (140) may therefore be accessed by the server (105) and mayprovide multi-user access to a number of databases.

In the example presented in the present specification, the partsdatabase (140) may include a listing of all manufactured airbags as wellas metadata associated with those airbags. In this example, the metadatamay include an associated serial number of the airbag, a manufacturingdate, a vehicle identification number (VIN) associated with the airbag,the date the airbag was installed in the vehicle associate with the VIN,removal date, any associated airbags installed in the same vehicle thatthe present airbag is also installed in, destruction date, the internetprotocol (IP) address associated of the user device (110-1 through110-5) used to updated or alter the metadata, location (i.e. globalpositioning satellite (GPS) information) of any of the previoustransactions or actions completed with a user device (110-1 through110-5), and any actors associated with any of the previous transactionsor actions, among others. This information associated with each airbagmay be used the present system and method described herein to track eachairbag from when it was manufactured to when it is destroyed. In oneexample, the system may treat a group of airbags as a family of airbags.The family of airbags may comprise all airbags that belong to onespecific vehicle. Thus all airbags are not only associated with avehicle, but also have a familiar relationship with each other airbag inthat vehicle. As one of the number of airbags in the family of airbagsis replaced, the metadata may be changed for each airbag in the family.The replacement airbag is associated with the VIN of the vehicle as wellas with each airbag identification number associated with each of theother airbags in that vehicle. Each of the other airbags metadata mayalso be updated and associated with the replacement airbagidentification number. Still further, the association of each of theother airbags with the replaced airbag is now severed indicating thatthe replaced airbag is no longer part of the airbag family.

Thus the present system and method may provide to a number of differenttypes of users with information regarding each airbag installed in avehicle. Although the present specification describes the system andmethod in terms of tracking a number of airbags, this example is notmeant to be limiting and other types of goods may be tracked using thedescribed system and method. The goods may include any good that anyperson or entity (manufacturer, consumer, insurance agency, etc.) maywish to track the use of in order to avoid liability associated withthat good or save operational costs.

In order to allow a number of users to gain access to the data containedon the parts database (140), a number of user computing devices (110-1through 110-5) may be communicatively coupled to the server (105). Asdescribed above, the user computing devices (110-1 through 110-5) may becommunicatively coupled to the server (105) via, for example, aninternet connection. The user computing devices (110-1 through 110-5)may be any type of computing device including a computer tablet (110-1),a desktop computing device (110-2, 110-5), a laptop computing device(110-3), a personal digital assistant or smartphone (110-4), amongothers. Each of these user computing devices (110-1 through 110-5) maycomprise a processor and a data storage device similar to the server(105) described above. In one example, the user computing devices (110-1through 110-5) may further comprise a barcode scanner, a camera, or anyother information capture device such that a VIN on a specific vehicleor an airbag barcode may be input into the user computing device (110-1through 110-5) and used by the system as described herein. The usercomputing devices (110-1 through 110-5) may be used by a number ofdifferent types of users and may provide each user with a level ofaccess to the parts database (140) to fit a particular objective. Eachof the user computing devices (110-1 through 110-5) may also provide tothe user a user device interface (145-1, 145-2, 145-3, 145-4, 145-5)including a graphical user interface such that they may interact withthe computer readable program code (130) as described above in order togain access to and interact with that data on the parts database (140).

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a number of graphical user interface pagespresented to a user of the system (FIG. 1, 100) according to one exampleof the principles described herein. In the present specification and inthe appended claims, the term “page” is meant to be understood broadlyas a display image generated by the GUI that provides fields andcontrols that help users accomplish tasks. In one example, these pagesmay be linked in such a way as to lead a user to the information oractivities he or she is intending to engage in. Additionally, they mayprovide any suitable data entry tools such as text boxes, slider bars,check boxes, buttons, barcode scanner interfaces and/or other suitabletextual and/or graphical data entry tools that allow a user to adjust orselect options on the pages. The pages (200) shown in FIG. 2 representan initial login page (205). The initial login page (205) may provide auser of the system (FIG. 1, 100) with the ability to enter in a username(207) and a password (209) in order to gain secure access to the system(FIG. 1, 100) and specifically the data in the parts database (140). Auser who has registered with the system (FIG. 1, 100) may type in theirrespective username (207) and password (209) and receive access to thedata. However, a user who has not received or who has forgot such logininformation may select one of either the create account link (211) orforgot login link (213). Additionally, for added security andcustomization of the system (FIG. 1, 100), a change password link (215)may also be presented on the login page (205) in order to provide theuser with the ability to change the password.

The forgot login link (213) may direct a user to a forgot login page(217) where the user may enter in a valid email address and have his orher login information emailed to him or her securely. The user may thenenter in this information on the login page (205) and gain access to thesystem (FIG. 1, 100). A user may also choose to select the changepassword link (215) and be directed to a change password page (219)where the user may provide information to the system (FIG. 1, 100)sufficient to identify the user and a new password the user is intendingto use to gain access to the system (FIG. 1, 100).

The user may also choose to create an account by selecting the createaccount link (211). The create account link (211) may be provided to auser when the user's access to the system (FIG. 1, 100) is the initialaccess. When selected, the user is brought to a create account page(221) where the user may be directed to enter in personal informationsuch as a name, address, email, phone number, and credit cardinformation, among others. This information may be stored, for example,by the system (FIG. 1, 100) on the server (FIG. 1, 105). In addition tothe personal information presented on the create account page (221), theuser may also be asked to indicate the activities the user is engaged inby noting what profession or area they work in. For example, the usermay indicate that they are a member of law enforcement in a certain areaand may indicate so by selecting a law radial button (223). In additionto presenting this option to the user, the system (FIG. 1, 100) mayrequest additional credentials from the user indicating that, in thisexample, the user is indeed a law enforcement officer. These credentialsmay include a social security number or an identification number (i.e.,a law enforcement identification number, etc.). The additionalcredentials may provide a level of security in the system (FIG. 1, 100)as well as direct the user to pages in the GUI more relevant to his orher tasks according to the methods described herein. The system (FIG. 1,100) may further store this information such that the user will betreated as, for example, a law enforcement user and will also bedirected to the appropriate pages once the user has logged into thesystem (FIG. 1, 100). Although FIG. 2 shows a “dealer,” (225) “shop,”(227) “law,” (223) “insurance,” (229) and “public” (231) radial button,more radial buttons may be provided so as to accommodate a number ofother types of users. Additionally, the present specificationcontemplates that these terms may be adjusted such that a user maybetter define the type of profession he or she is engaged in. In thepresent example, however, each radial button is meant to be actuated bya certain type of person. For example, the “dealer” (225) radial buttonis meant to be actuated by a person engaged in selling vehicles such asat a dealership. Additionally, the “shop” (227) radial button is meantto be actuated by a person engaged in repairing vehicles. Further, the“law” (223) radial button is meant to be actuated by a person engaged inlaw enforcement. Still further, the “insurance” (229) radial button ismeant to be actuated by a person engaged in evaluating damage oradjusting insurance coverage on a vehicle. Even further, the “public”(231) radial button is meant to be actuated by those users who do notfit into any of the above categories and may be a member of the public.

The actuation of these radial buttons (223, 225, 227, 229, 231) willdirect a user to a specific number or series of pages generatedspecifically for that type of person. Therefore, a user who is engagedin law enforcement may not wish to actuate the “public” (231) radialbutton because the pages presented to that user may not be applicable tothat user. However, the user may also be provided with a link on anypage that will allow them to change this setting.

Once the user has entered in the appropriate information and hasprovided the system (FIG. 1, 100) with the correct username (207) andpassword (209) the user may be directed to his or her user specificpages (233) based on the information provided in the “Create Account”page (221). The following figures represent a number of series of pagesthat may be presented to a number of different types of users based onthe radial button (223, 225, 227, 229, 231) selected by the user. Thefollowing examples, however, are merely meant to be examples and are notintended to be limiting in any way. Instead, the pages and series ofpages presented are meant to be used as a method by which a user canaccess the information regarding any number of goods (i.e. airbags) andaddress their current condition.

FIG. 2 further comprises an account button (235). Actuation of theaccount button (235) may lead the user to an account details page (FIG.11, 1105). The account details page (FIG. 11, 1105) may provide a userwith specifics of his or her account. This page will be described inmore detail below.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a number of graphical user interface pagespresented to a user of the system such as a dealer according to oneexample of the principles described herein. As briefly described above,a dealer may wish to know what airbags are present in a specificvehicle. In one example, the dealer may access the information regardingthe currently installed airbags such that they will be informed as towhether or not any specific airbag has been replaced under a recallprocedure initiated by the original airbag manufacturer or themanufacturer of the vehicle. Additionally, if the dealer is a used carsalesman, for example, he or she may use the system (FIG. 1, 100) toaccess data as to whether the current airbags installed are black-marketairbags. This knowledge may allow the dealer to better determine whetherthe car should be sold or the airbags replaced such that the dealer willnot be subject to any litigation should the airbags not work in theevent of an accident.

In order to accomplish these goals, the dealer may sign up or otherwiseaccess the system (FIG. 1, 100) as described in connection with FIG. 2.In doing so, the dealer may be directed to a dealer user page (305). Thedealer user page (305) may comprise a number of options for the dealerto select in order to find general information about makes and models ofvehicles and their associated airbags or specific information about acertain vehicle. The dealer user page (305) comprises a number of enterVIN vehicle identification options (310), a number of enter airbagidentification (315) options, and a report query (320) selection option.

FIG. 3 shows a number of pages that may be shown to a user uponselecting the report query (320) selection option. When a dealer selectsthis option, the dealer is directed to a history report query page(325). The history report query page provides fields into which thedealer may enter in the make, model, year, status, and actions of anytype of vehicle. In this case, the dealer may be as specific or generalas to the amount and type of data input on this screen to fit aparticular objective. For example, if the dealer would like to know thestatus of all airbags installed in Ford® vehicles, the dealer may selectfrom a pull down menu or input the term “Ford” into the vehicle makesfield and submit the query. In this example, the dealer will be providedwith a list of all vehicles made by Ford® as well as all of the types ofairbags installed in those vehicles and their status. As used in thepresent specification and in the appended claims, the term “status” maybe broadly interpreted as the state of any single airbag installed in avehicle. In this example, the dealer may see that all passenger airbagsin all Ford® Explorers® have been subjected to a recall. With thisinformation, the dealer may look at his or her current inventory inorder to better determine if any vehicle has an airbag installed in itthat is subject to a recall. If so, the dealer is made aware and maytake remedial actions such as replacing the recalled airbags with newairbags.

Other types of information may be presented to the dealer. This otherinformation may comprise airbag replacement statistics, recall start andend dates, and the model numbers of each type of airbag installed ineach make and model of vehicle. Once the dealer has generated a reportusing the history report query page (325), the dealer may also bepresented with the opportunity to have that report sent to him or hervia email by selecting an email report option (330) on the historyreport query page (325). The dealers previously entered information, inthis case the dealer's email address, may be used to send the report tothe dealer's email account.

The dealer may further lookup a specific vehicle or airbag in order todetermine its status. This may be accomplished by selecting optionsprovided to the dealer under the enter VIN vehicle identification option(310) or the enter airbag identification (315) option. The enter VINvehicle identification options (310) will now be discussed in connectionwith FIGS. 4 and 5. As can be seen in FIG. 3, actuation of either a “VINbarcode” button (332), a “VIN photo” button (334), or a “VIN type”button (336) allows a dealer to provide to the system (FIG. 1, 100) witha vehicle identification number (VIN) associated with any particularvehicle. Additionally, FIG. 3 shows an “airbag barcode” button (338), an“airbag photo” button (340), or an “airbag type” button (342) thatallows a dealer to provide to the system (FIG. 1, 100) with an airbagidentification number (AlN) associated with any particular airbag.

Turning to FIG. 4, a diagram showing the number of graphical dealerinterface pages presented to the dealer after the dealer has actuatedeither the “VIN barcode” button (332), “VIN photo” button (334), or “VINtype” button (336). These pages follow schematically from FIG. 3 viacircle “A.” Upon actuation of the “VIN barcode” button (332), forexample, the dealer is directed to a VIN barcode reader page (405). TheVIN barcode reader page (405) allows the dealer to use a captured imageor a camera to capture an image of a barcode associated with a VIN. Inone example, the dealer may upload an image comprising the barcode tothe page. In another example, the system may interface with a digitalcamera installed on the device used to view the VIN barcode reader page(405) and allow the dealer to, in real time, take a picture of thebarcode and upload it to the VIN barcode reader page (405). In yetanother example, the system may interface with a digital camerainstalled on the device used to view the VIN barcode reader page (405)and allow the dealer to augment the camera view by overlaying the pageon top of the camera view allowing the user to position the camera viewsuch that a picture may be taken using a interface on the page. This maybe done while the user is viewing both the VIN barcode reader page (405)and the barcode in real time creating an augmented reality view for theuser. In either of these instances, the device used may be any of thedevices (110-1, 110-2, 110-3, 110-4, 110-5) described above inconnection with FIG. 1.

Upon actuation of the “VIN photo” button (334), the dealer is directedto a VIN reader page (410). The VIN reader page (410) allows the dealerto use a captured image or a camera to capture an image of a VINassociated with a vehicle. Again, similar to as described above, in oneexample the dealer may take a previously obtained picture of the VIN andupload that image comprising the VIN to the VIN reader page (410). Thesystem (FIG. 1, 100) may then recognize the numbering and lettering ofthe VIN, convert the recognized text into digital information andpresent a new page to the dealer based on that information. In anotherexample, the dealer may be directed to, in real time, take a picture andupload it to the VIN reader page (410). In yet another example, thesystem (FIG. 1, 100) may interface with a digital camera installed onthe device used to view the VIN reader page (410) and allow the dealerto augment the camera view by overlaying the page (410) on top of thecamera view allowing the user to position the camera view such that apicture may be taken using a interface on the page (410). This may bedone while the user is viewing both the VIN reader page (410) and theVIN in real time creating an augmented reality view for the user. Ineither of these instances, the device used may be any of the devices(110-1, 110-2, 110-3, 110-4, 110-5) described above in connection withFIG. 1.

Upon actuation of the “VIN type” button (336), the dealer is directed toa VIN type page (415). The VIN type page (415) may allow the dealer tomanually enter in the VIN using an input device associated with thedevice (110-1, 110-2, 110-3, 110-4, 110-5) used to view the VIN typepage (415). After entering in the information described above via eitherthe VIN barcode reader page (405), the VIN reader page (410), or the VINtype page (415), the dealer is directed to an installed airbagconfirmation page (505). FIG. 4 indicates that, upon entry of thisinformation, the page flow continues by following circle “C” whichappears on FIG. 5. The installed airbag confirmation page (505)comprises vehicle information (510) and airbag information (515). Thevehicle information (510) comprises the vehicle's make, the vehicle'smodel, the vehicle's manufacturing year, and the VIN, among otherinformation. The vehicle information (510) may be used by the dealer toconfirm that the vehicle in question is the correct type of vehicle. Insome examples, a vehicle may have a wrong VIN number associated with itas a result of, for example, previous criminal activities. The installedairbag confirmation page (505) allows the dealer to confirm that thevehicle is the correct vehicle.

In addition to the vehicle information (510), the installed airbagconfirmation page (505) also comprises airbag information (515). Theairbag information (515) comprises information regarding all of theairbags present in that vehicle. Thus the airbag information (515) maycomprise an airbag identification number, the location of where in thevehicle that airbag is installed or description of that airbag, and thecurrent status of the airbag, among other information. The airbag numbermay be a number associated with that airbag and which is particular tothat airbag and no other manufactured airbag comprises an identicalnumber. The airbag location information or airbag descriptioninformation provides information about the location of the airbag in thevehicle. The airbag status information allows the dealer to determine ifany of the airbags are subject to a recall, improperly installed in thevehicle, whether the airbag is an original equipment manufacturerairbag, among others. Particularly to the dealer, the status of theairbag may quickly allow the dealer to determine whether or not allinstalled airbags in any given vehicle are subject to a recall eitherfrom the OEM or from the manufacturer of the vehicle. Because eachairbag comprises a unique number and because each airbag is tied to aunique vehicle, entering in the VIN allows the dealer to quickly gothrough current inventory as well as customer vehicles to determinewhether action should be taken with any of the associated airbags.

As briefly described above, the airbag information (515) comprisesinformation regarding the specific airbags associated with a specificvehicle. This information may be compiled at the time of installation.For example, the information may be created first by the OEM. The OEMwould make the airbag and assign any given airbag a unique number. Asthe airbag is shipped, a user implementing the system (FIG. 1, 100) mayidentify the airbag and determine that the airbag is an OEM airbag andhas yet to be installed in a vehicle. In one example, the dealer may bereplacing a defective or deployed airbag with a new OEM airbag. To thisend, the dealer may select an airbag on the installed airbagconfirmation page (505) that is to be replaced. Upon selection of theairbag to be replaced, the dealer may also enter in identifyinginformation regarding the new airbag using a number of airbagidentification options (520). The airbag identification options (520)comprise an “airbag barcode” button (525), an “airbag number photo”button (530), or an “airbag number type” button (535). Much like the VINvehicle identification option (FIG. 3, 310), the selection of either the“airbag barcode” button (525), “airbag number photo” button (530), orthe “airbag number type” button (535) will direct the dealer to threedifferent pages.

When the dealer actuates the “airbag barcode” button (525), the dealermay be directed to an airbag barcode reader page (540). The airbagbarcode reader page (540) allows the dealer to use a captured image or acamera to capture an image of a barcode associated with an airbag. Inone example, the dealer may upload an image comprising the barcode tothe page (540). In another example, the system may interface with adigital camera installed on the device used to view the airbag barcodereader page (540) and allow the dealer to, in real time, take a pictureof the barcode and upload it to the airbag barcode reader page (540). Inyet another example, the system may interface with a digital camerainstalled on the device used to view the airbag barcode reader page(540) and allow the dealer to augment the camera view by overlaying thepage (540) on top of the camera view allowing the dealer to position thecamera view such that a picture may be taken using a interface on thepage (540). This may be done while the user is viewing both the airbagbarcode reader page (540) and the airbag's barcode in real time creatingan augmented reality view for the dealer. In either of these instances,the device used may be any of the devices (110-1, 110-2, 110-3, 110-4,110-5) described above in connection with FIG. 1.

Upon activation of the “airbag number photo” button (530), the dealermay be directed to an airbag number reader page (540). The airbag numberreader page (545) allows the dealer to use a captured image or a camerato capture an image of a number associated with an airbag. In oneexample, the dealer may upload an image comprising the number to thepage (545). The system (FIG. 1, 100) may then recognize the numberingand lettering of the airbag number, convert the recognized text intodigital information and present a new page to the dealer based on thatinformation.

In another example, the system may interface with a digital camerainstalled on the device used to view the airbag number reader page (545)and allow the dealer to, in real time, take a picture of the number andupload it to the airbag number reader page (545). Again, the system(FIG. 1, 100) may then recognize the numbering and lettering of theairbag number, convert the recognized text into digital information andpresent a new page to the dealer based on that information. In yetanother example, the system (FIG. 1, 100) may interface with a digitalcamera installed on the device used to view the airbag number readerpage (545) and allow the dealer to augment the camera view by overlayingthe page (545) on top of the camera view allowing the dealer to positionthe camera view such that a picture may be taken using a interface onthe page (545). This may be done while the user is viewing both theairbag number reader page (545) and the airbag's number in real timecreating an augmented reality view for the dealer. In this example, thesystem (FIG. 1, 100) may then recognize the numbering and lettering ofthe airbag's number, convert the recognized text into digitalinformation and present a new page to the dealer based on thatinformation. In either of these instances, the device used may be any ofthe devices (110-1, 110-2, 110-3, 110-4, 110-5) described above inconnection with FIG. 1.

Upon actuation of the airbag number type” button (535), the dealer isdirected to an airbag number type page (550). The airbag number typepage (550) may allow the dealer to manually enter in the airbag's numberusing an input device associated with the device (110-1, 110-2, 110-3,110-4, 110-5) used to view the airbag number type page (550).

The installed airbag confirmation page (505) further comprises a scannew vehicle button (555). Actuation of the scan new vehicle button (555)presents the dealer back at the dealer user page (FIG. 3, 305) where thedealer may enter information regarding another VIN and restart theprocess as described above.

After entering in the information described above via either the airbagbarcode reader page (540), the airbag number reader page (545), or theairbag number type page (550), the dealer is directed to a replaceairbag confirmation page (605). FIG. 5 indicates that, upon entry ofthis information, the page flow continues by following circle “D” whichalso appears on FIG. 6.

The replace airbag confirmation page (605) comprises informationregarding the specific airbag to be replaced and the specific airbagreplacing that airbag. Again, the airbag being replaced as well as thereplacement airbag have unique numbers associated with each and thenumbers will be stored by the system (FIG. 1, 100) as an airbag that isbeing replaced and its replacement airbag. The system (FIG. 1, 100) maystore this information in the parts database (FIG. 1, 140) describedabove. The dealer may confirm the replacement by actuating aconfirmation button (610). Additionally, the replace airbag confirmationpage (605) comprises a scan new vehicle button (615). Actuation of thescan new vehicle button (615) presents the dealer back at the dealeruser page (FIG. 3, 305) where the dealer may enter information regardinganother VIN and restart the process as described above.

Upon activation of the confirmation button (610), the dealer ispresented with an instructions page (620). The instructions page (620)provides the dealer with further information such as where to send thereplaced airbag. In one example, the instructions may indicate that abag, such as a Tyvek® bag, has been provided with the replacement airbagand that the dealer is to place the replaced airbag in the Tyvek® bagand ship the replaced airbag to the address indicated. Tyvek® is a brandof flashspun high-density polyethylene fibers produced in sheets or bagform and is a registered trademark of Dupont®. The Tyvek® bag mayfurther indicate that postage has been prepaid and that the dealer neednot pay to have the replaced airbag shipped.

An advantage to requesting that the dealer send the replaced airbag to aspecific location is that the OEM or other entity associated with theuse of the airbag may be assured that the airbag that has been replacedwill not be reused. For example, where the airbag has deployed, an OEMmay want that airbag to be taken out of circulation and not reused. Insome instances, the OEM may be financially incentivized to make surethat no dealer, vehicle repairman or other entity uses that airbag inlight of the fact that it had already deployed and cannot be used safelyin a future accident. In another example, the replaced airbag may nothave deployed but may be one of a number of airbags within a vehiclethat was subjected to a crash. In this case, at least the OEM and aninsurance provider may have a financial incentive to remove all theairbags associated with a vehicle (via the VIN) removed from thevehicle. In this example, the OEM or the insurance provider may beworried that during the crash the airbags should have deployed andbecause they did not, they may be defective. The OEM may further befinancially incentivized to remove all those airbags from circulationand assure that they are destroyed.

Whether or not the Tyvek® bag as described above is used, the system(FIG. 1, 100) may further alert a dealer or other airbag installer thatan airbag is not to be installed. In the example where a defective ordeployed airbag is attempted to be installed in a vehicle as a bone fidereplacement, the system (FIG. 1, 100) may review the history of anyspecific airbag via the associated airbag number or barcode. Thisinformation again is stored in the parts database (140) and may beaccessed by a user of the system (FIG. 1, 100). Upon being notified thatthe airbag is defective in some way or that the airbag should bedestroyed instead of used, the installer will refrain from its use. Thisprotects a number of persons and entities involved including, forexample, the OEM, the passenger/driver of the vehicle, the vehiclemanufacturer, an insurance provider, and a vehicle repairman, amongothers.

Turning back to FIG. 6, the instructions page (620) may further comprisea next button (630) that, when actuated by the dealer, directs thedealer to a review page (635). The review page (635) indicates that thesystem (FIG. 1, 100) now recognizes that the airbag has been replaced byan airbag with a specific airbag number and may further indicate theidentification information of the airbag that was replaced. The system(FIG. 1, 100) may further indicate to the dealer where in the vehiclethe airbag was installed, when it was installed, and update the statusof the airbag, among others.

The review page (635) may further comprise a scan new vehicle button(640). Actuation of the scan new vehicle button (640) presents thedealer back at the dealer user page (FIG. 3, 305) where the dealer mayenter information regarding another VIN and restart the process asdescribed above.

From the user specific page (FIG. 2, 233) to the review page (FIG. 6,635) may constitute the pages presented to the dealer as the user of thesystem (FIG. 1, 100) as the dealer reviews what airbags are present in avehicle based on the vehicles VIN. The dealer may also look up aspecific airbag within a vehicle. Returning back to FIG. 3, FIG. 3comprises a number of enter airbag identification (315) options, whichwhen actuated by the dealer leads the dealer to a number of pages. Asindicated by circle “B,” actuation of either the “airbag barcode” button(338), the “airbag number photo” button (340), or the “airbag numbertype” button (342), the dealer is lead to either an airbag barcodereader page (705), an airbag number reader page (710), or an airbagnumber type page (715). Much like the airbag barcode reader page (540),an airbag number reader page (545), or an airbag number type page (550)described in FIG. 5, the dealer may enter in appropriate information toview details about that airbag. With the airbag barcode reader page(705), the dealer may use a captured image or use a camera to capture animage of a barcode associated with an airbag and upload that to the page(705). In one example, the dealer may upload an image comprising theairbag barcode to the page (705). In another example, the system (FIG.1, 100) may interface with a digital camera installed on the device usedto view the airbag barcode reader page (705) and allow the dealer to, inreal time, take a picture of the barcode and upload it to the airbagbarcode reader page (705). In yet another example, the system mayinterface with a digital camera installed on the device used to view theairbag barcode reader page (705) and allow the dealer to augment thecamera view by overlaying the page (705) on top of the camera viewallowing the dealer to position the camera view such that a picture maybe taken using a interface on the page (705). This may be done while theuser is viewing both the airbag barcode reader page (705) and theairbag's barcode in real time creating an augmented reality view for thedealer. In either of these instances, the device used may be any of thedevices (110-1, 110-2, 110-3, 110-4, 110-5) described above inconnection with FIG. 1.

Upon activation of the “airbag number photo” button (340), the dealermay be directed to an airbag number reader page (710). The airbag numberreader page (710) allows the dealer to use a captured image or a camerato capture an image of a number associated with an airbag. In oneexample, the dealer may upload an image comprising the number to thepage (710). The system (FIG. 1, 100) may then recognize the numberingand lettering of the airbag number, convert the recognized text intodigital information and present a new page to the dealer based on thatinformation.

In another example, the system may interface with a digital camerainstalled on the device used to view the airbag number reader page (710)and allow the dealer to, in real time, take a picture of the number andupload it to the airbag number reader page (710). Again, the system(FIG. 1, 100) may then recognize the numbering and lettering of theairbag number, convert the recognized text into digital information andpresent a new page to the dealer based on that information. In yetanother example, the system (FIG. 1, 100) may interface with a digitalcamera installed on the device used to view the airbag number readerpage (710) and allow the dealer to augment the camera view by overlayingthe page (710) on top of the camera view allowing the dealer to positionthe camera view such that a picture may be taken using a interface onthe page (710). This may be done while the user is viewing both theairbag number reader page (710) and the airbag's number in real timecreating an augmented reality view for the dealer. In this example, thesystem (FIG. 1, 100) may then recognize the numbering and lettering ofthe airbag's number, convert the recognized text into digitalinformation and present a new page to the dealer based on thatinformation. In either of these instances, the device used may be any ofthe devices (110-1, 110-2, 110-3, 110-4, 110-5) described above inconnection with FIG. 1.

Upon actuation of the airbag number type” button (342), the dealer isdirected to an airbag number type page (715). The airbag number typepage (715) may allow the dealer to manually enter in the airbag's numberusing an input device associated with the device (110-1, 110-2, 110-3,110-4, 110-5) used to view the airbag number type page (715).

Entry of the information described in connection with any of the threepages (705, 710, 715), leads the dealer to an airbag identification page(805) as indicated by circle “E” found on FIG. 7 and FIG. 8. The airbagidentification page (805) comprises vehicle information (810) and airbaginformation (815). The vehicle information (810) comprises the vehicle'smake, the vehicle's model, the vehicle's manufacturing year, and theVIN, among other information. The vehicle information (810) may be usedby the dealer to confirm that the vehicle in question is the correcttype of vehicle (with matching VIN) that the airbag is associated with.

In addition to the vehicle information (810), the installed airbagconfirmation page (805) also comprises airbag information (815). Theairbag information (815) comprises information regarding all of theairbags present in that vehicle as well as the information associatedwith the airbag the dealer had looked up using the airbag barcode readerpage (705), the airbag number reader page (710), or the airbag numbertype page (715) described in connection with FIG. 7.

The installed airbag confirmation page (805) also comprises a scan newvehicle or airbag button (820). Actuation of the scan new vehicle orairbag button (820) presents the dealer back at the dealer user page(FIG. 3, 305) where the dealer may enter information regarding anotherairbag or VIN and restart the process as described above.

The installed airbag confirmation page (805) also comprises a replaceentered airbag button (825) which, when actuated, displays an enter newreplacement airbag page (830). The enter new replacement airbag page(830) comprises similar options as those found on the dealer user page(FIG. 3, 305), namely an “airbag barcode” button (835), an “airbagphoto” button (840), or an “airbag type” button (845). Actuation ofthese buttons will direct the dealer to one of the pages described inconnection with FIG. 7 namely the airbag barcode reader page (705), theairbag number reader page (710), or the airbag number type page (715)respectively. FIG. 8 indicates this by the circle “B.”

After entering in the information as described above in connection withFIG. 3, the dealer may be directed to a replace airbag and vehicleconfirmation page (905) as indicated by circle “F” shown on FIG. 8 andFIG. 9. The replace airbag and vehicle confirmation page (905) comprisesvehicle information (910). The vehicle information (910) may be used bythe dealer to confirm that the vehicle in question is the correct typeof vehicle. In some examples, a vehicle may have a wrong VIN numberassociated with it as a result of, for example, previous criminalactivities. The replace airbag and vehicle confirmation page (905)allows the dealer to confirm that the vehicle is the correct vehicle.

The replace airbag and vehicle confirmation page (905) may furthercomprise a scan new vehicle or airbag button (920). Actuation of thescan new vehicle or airbag button (920) presents the dealer back at thedealer user page (FIG. 3, 305) where the dealer may enter informationregarding another airbag or VIN and restart the process as describedabove.

The replace airbag and vehicle confirmation page (905) may furthercomprise a confirmation button (915). Upon activation of theconfirmation button (915), the dealer is presented with a reason forreplacement page (925). The reason for replacement page (925) requestsfrom the dealer information as to why the airbag is being replaced. Thereasons for the replacement of the airbag may be varied including, forexample, that the airbag is deployed, the airbag was subjected to waterdamage, or that the airbag was in a vehicle that was involved in a crashand was not deployed indicative that the airbag is defective. The reasonfor replacement page (925) may present these reasons to the dealer via anumber of push buttons (930) or may request that the dealer manuallyenter in the reason via a box (935). Either way, upon activation of thepush buttons (930) or entry of the information in the box (935), thedealer is presented with the instructions page (FIG. 6, 620) asindicated by circle “G.” This directs the dealer to send the replacedairbag to the address provided and view a confirmation page (FIG. 6,635) as described above. In one example, the instructions page (FIG. 6,620) may further provide a user with the ability to print out a mailingaddress. In this example, the instructions page (FIG. 6, 620) mayfurther comprise a print button which, when actuated, sends a printrequest to a printing device associated with the user computing device(110-1 through 110-5) the user is operating. In one example, the mailingaddress may be printed on a sticker label such that the user may removethe sticker from its backing and place the address on the Tyvek® bagdescribed above.

The above processes described in connection with FIGS. 3-9 describe thespecific set of pages used by a dealer as the user of the system (FIG.1, 100). In this case, the dealer gained access via the login pagesdescribed in connection with FIG. 2 and was directed to his or herspecific user page (FIG. 2, 233); namely the dealer user page (FIG. 3,305). As indicated above, the system (FIG. 1, 100) may be used by anumber of different types of users. These different types of users mayeach be presented with similar pages that allow the user to enter inidentification information regarding the vehicle or airbag, reviewairbag and vehicle information, confirm airbag replacement, view airbagreplacement confirmation pages, and view vehicle and airbag historyreports. Consequently, the pages detailed in FIGS. 1-9 will be referredto where similar pages are presented to other types of users. Whererequested for further clarification, further details will be providedfor pages describing the user pages displayed to a type of user.

With referencing FIGS. 1-9, a number of graphical user interface pagespresented to a user of the system such as a body shop owner or vehiclerepairman will now be described. The repairman may also be presentedwith the pages presented in FIG. 2. Specifically, the repairman mayenter login information into initial login page (205) in order to gainaccess to the services provided by the system (FIG. 1, 100). Theservices provided to the repairman may include, at least, all of theservice as those described above in connection with the dealer. As aconsequence, the repairman may be presented with the same or similarpages presented in FIGS. 2-9. The process may be similar as well.Specifically, the repairman may enter either information regarding thevehicle that is having an airbag replaced or information regarding theairbag to be replaced. The repairman may further be provided withinformation to confirm the airbags present in the vehicle and theability to choose which of those airbags are being replaced. Stillfurther, the repairman may be presented with the ability to confirm thatan airbag was replaced, receive information on where to ship thereplaced airbag (i.e. via the Tyvek® bag), and receive a confirmationpage that the airbag and vehicle data has been updated in the partsdatabase (FIG. 1, 140). Still further, the repairman may enterinformation on a history report query page (FIG. 3, 325) to receiveinformation regarding the airbag history of any single vehicle or typeof vehicle.

A repairman may use the system (FIG. 1, 100) to determine what airbagsare present any vehicle he or she is servicing. With the knowledge ofwhat airbags are present in the vehicle, the repairman may be able tobetter determine which airbags are to be replaced in the vehicle afterthe vehicle has been in a crash. The repairman may be incentivized touse the system (FIG. 1, 100) in order to protect the repairman from anypotential litigation that might result in installing a black-marketairbag in a vehicle. With the system (FIG. 1, 100) the repairman maydetermine whether an airbag is an OEM airbag that has never been used orinstalled in a vehicle before. Additionally, the use of the system (FIG.1, 100) may also streamline the interaction between the repairman andthe insurance company by confirming to the insurance company that theappropriate airbags were installed in the vehicle during the repair ofthat vehicle. Other advantages may also be realized by the repairman aswell including ease of record keeping as well as convenience of having agreater amount of information regarding any vehicle and the airbagsassociated with that vehicle.

While still referencing FIGS. 1-9, a number of graphical user interfacepages presented to a user of the system such as a law enforcementofficer will now be described. The law enforcement officer may enterlogin information into initial login page (205) in order to gain accessto the services provided by the system (FIG. 1, 100). The servicesprovided to the law enforcement officer may include, at least, all ofthe service as those described above in connection with the dealer. As aconsequence, the law enforcement officer may be presented with the sameor similar pages presented in FIGS. 2-9. The process may be similar aswell. Specifically, the law enforcement officer may enter in informationregarding the vehicle that comprises an airbag that has been deemed tobe stolen or the number of the airbag that appears to be stolen. The lawenforcement officer may further be provided with information to confirmthe airbags present in the vehicle and the ability to choose which ofthose airbags are to be declared as stolen. In this example, the replaceairbag confirmation page (FIG. 6, 605) described in connection with thedealer and repairman may instead be a stolen airbag confirmation page bywhich the law enforcement officer may indicate that an airbag in avehicle is stolen. Still further, the law enforcement officer may bepresented with the ability to confirm that an airbag was marked asstole, receive information on where to ship the replaced airbag (i.e.via the Tyvek® bag) if the airbag is found, and receive a confirmationpage that the airbag and vehicle data has been updated in the partsdatabase (FIG. 1, 140). Still further, the law enforcement officer mayenter information on a history report query page (FIG. 3, 325) toreceive information regarding the airbag history of any single vehicleor type of vehicle.

A law enforcement officer may use the system (FIG. 1, 100) to reportthat any vehicle has an airbag missing or that an airbag has been takenout of a vehicle. For example, upon finding that a vehicle is missing anairbag as the result of an apparent theft, the law enforcement officermay access the system (FIG. 1, 100) in order to match the location ofthe missing airbag and identify the airbag that should be marked asstolen. In another example, the law enforcement officer may enter in anairbag identification number of an airbag found to determine if theairbag has been marked as stolen or not and whether it should be markedas stolen. This allows any other user to access information about thatairbag and be notified that the airbag should not be installed in avehicle. This prevents any stolen airbag from being a commodity on theblack-market. Additionally, the airbags themselves may be better trackeddown and destroyed as the law enforcement officer uses the system (FIG.1, 100). Airbags have chemicals in them which may be harmful to theenvironment and persons interacting with them. Additionally, someexplosives used in the airbags (i.e. sodium azide (NaN₃)) maypotentially be used by terrorists as an explosive device. Tracking andproperly destroying the airbags using the system (FIG. 1, 100) mayprevent such an occurrence from happening.

Again, while still referencing FIGS. 1-9, a number of graphical userinterface pages presented to a user of the system such as an insuranceagent or insurance entity will now be described. The insurance agent mayenter login information into initial login page (205) in order to gainaccess to the services provided by the system (FIG. 1, 100). Theservices provided to the insurance agent may include, at least, all ofthe service as those described above in connection with the dealerdescribed above. As a consequence, the insurance agent may be presentedwith the same or similar pages presented in FIGS. 2-9. The process maybe similar as well. Specifically, the insurance agent may enter ininformation regarding the vehicle that comprises an airbag of interestor the number of the airbag in question. The insurance agent may furtherbe provided with information to confirm the airbags present in thevehicle and the ability to choose which of those airbags are to bedeclared by the insurance agent as airbags that are defective in someway. In this example, the replace airbag confirmation page (FIG. 6, 605)described in connection with the dealer and repairman may instead be adefective airbag confirmation page by which the insurance agent mayindicate that an airbag in a vehicle is defective. The reasons for theairbag being deemed as defective may be varied including, for example,that the airbag is deployed, the airbag was subjected to water damage,or that the airbag was in a vehicle that was involved in a crash and wasnot deployed indicative that the airbag is functionally defective.

Still further, the insurance agent may be presented with the ability toconfirm that an airbag was marked as defective, receive information onwhere to ship the defective airbag (i.e. via the Tyvek® bag), andreceive a confirmation page that the airbag and vehicle data has beenupdated in the parts database (FIG. 1, 140). Still further, theinsurance agent may enter information on a history report query page(FIG. 3, 325) to receive information regarding the airbag history of anysingle vehicle or type of vehicle.

An insurance agent may use the system (FIG. 1, 100) to report that anyairbag within a vehicle is defective. For example, when called to accessthe damage on a person's vehicle for which the insurance companyprovides insurance for, the insurance agent may indicate the status ofevery airbag in the vehicle. Depending on the circumstances, theinsurance agent may indicate via the system (FIG. 1, 100) that eachairbag is defective and needs to be replaced. In this case, the entry ofthe VIN or airbag number and the selection of why the airbags aredefective will indicate to a repairman of the vehicle, owner of thevehicle, or other user that the airbags should not be used in thevehicle or any other vehicle. This provides protection for the insurancecompany as well by allowing the insurance company to declare thatsubsequent use of the airbags, whether in the current vehicle or in asubsequent vehicle, may void any insurance claim presented to theinsurance company in the future. In this case, the insurance company mayshield itself from any claims from an insured motorist that may arisefrom the use of the defective airbags. Still further, the owner of thevehicle may be notified that the airbags have been declared by his orher insurance company as defective. This may be done, for example, viaan email notification or a phone call to the owner. The owner may thentake action to assure that the airbag history of his or her car isupdated with replacement (non-defective) airbags being associated withthe vehicle. The owner may instruct a repairman to replace the airbagsdeemed as defective by the insurance agent. The replacement of theairbags may be a condition by which the insured owner of the vehiclereceives full or partial insurance coverage on his or her vehicle.

Further to the above example of the insurance agent's use of the system(FIG. 1, 100), the system (FIG. 1, 100) may provide information to anymember of the public. As indicated above, a user may be deemed to be amember of the public and be given public user status if he or she is notone of the other types of users described here. As such, the defaultuser specific page (FIG. 2, 233) may be a public user page if othercredentials are not provided to indicate otherwise. As mentioned above,a user may be prompted to verify whether he or she is a member of agroup other than the public. For example, a law enforcement officer maybe requested to enter in a badge number or other identificationinformation as proof that that officer is allowed to access the data onthe system (FIG. 1, 100) and alter it. Similar scenarios may exist foran insurance agent, a dealer, an airbag recycler, an airbag packager, anOEM of airbags, or a distributor of airbags. The identificationinformation may be a social security number, a driver's license, or evena user identification created by the system (FIG. 1, 100) after theoperator has ascertained that the user is who he or she says they are.This user specific information may be maintained by the system (FIG. 1,100) in, for example, the parts database (140) which may reserve spacefor this type of data.

Where a user has been deemed to be a member of the public, FIGS. 2-9 maybe an example of a number of graphical user interface pages presented tothat public user of the system (FIG. 1, 100). The public user may enterlogin information into initial login page (205) in order to gain accessto the services provided by the system (FIG. 1, 100). The servicesprovided to the public may include, at least, the review of the metadataassociated with each airbag in a vehicle. As such, the public user maynot be given the ability to change the status of an airbag. In thiscase, this may prevent an owner of a vehicle from, for example, changingthe status of an airbag that was deemed by an insurance agent asdefective. As such, the user may be prevented from circumventing thereplacement of an airbag that should have been replaced in order for theuser to receive full insurance coverage on the vehicle.

In light of the above, the public user may be presented with all thepages presented in FIGS. 2-4 and the installed airbag confirmation page(FIG. 5, 505) merely informing the public user about the installedairbags. The public user may not be given the ability to indicate viathe airbag identification options (FIG. 5, 520), for example, whichairbags are being replaced or deemed defective. Consequently, the publicuser may use the system (FIG. 1, 100) as a method to protect them aswell as informing the potential purchaser of a vehicle whether theinstalled airbags are defective or have other problems associated withthem. In another example, the user may be provided with the ability tobe presented with and emailed a vehicle airbag history report asdescribed in connection with FIG. 3.

Again, while still referencing FIGS. 1-9, a number of graphical userinterface pages presented to a user of the system such as a recyclerwill now be described. The recycler may be any type of parts or materialrecycler. In one example, the recycler is a recycler of airbagsspecifically. In this example, the recycler may also be presented withthe pages described in FIG. 2. Specifically, the recycler may enterlogin information into initial login page (FIG. 2, 205) in order to gainaccess to the services provided by the system (FIG. 1, 100). Theservices provided to the recycler may include, at least, all of theservice as those described above in connection with the dealer. As aconsequence, the recycler may be presented with the same or similarpages presented in FIGS. 2-9. The process may be similar as well.Specifically, the recycler may enter either information regarding thevehicle from which a recycled airbag has been retrieved or informationregarding the airbag that has been retrieved. The recycler may furtherbe provided with information to confirm the airbags present in thevehicle and the ability to choose which of those airbags are beingrecycled or destroyed. The recycler may be the last person in the lifeof an airbag and may be the owner of the business to where other usersmay send the used, defective, or replaced airbags to as described inconnection with the instructions page (FIG. 6, 620). Specifically, otherusers may send the airbags in the Tyvek® bags to the recycler where therecycler can scan the airbag information and mark the airbag asdestroyed before placing the airbag in an incinerator or other disposalsystem. Consequently, each airbag may be traced from the originalequipment manufacturer (OEM) to the recycler with a number of otherusers (i.e. law enforcement officer, insurance agent, repairman) alsoaltering the data associated with the airbag as the airbag travelsthrough commerce.

Still further, the recycler may be presented with a confirmation pagethat the airbag data has been updated in the parts database (FIG. 1,140). Still further, the recycler may also enter information on ahistory report query page (FIG. 3, 325) to receive information regardingthe airbag history of any single vehicle or type of vehicle.

A recycler may use the system (FIG. 1, 100) in order to indicate on thesystem which airbags were received by the recycler and which airbagshave been destroyed. In one example, the recycler may be provided withmonetary compensation to perform the task of destroying the airbag andso indicating on the system (FIG. 1, 100).

An airbag packager may also use the system (FIG. 1, 100) as describedabove. With referencing FIGS. 1-9, the airbag packager may also bepresented with the pages presented in FIG. 2. Specifically, the airbagpackager may enter login information into initial login page (205) inorder to gain access to the services provided by the system (FIG. 1,100). The services provided to the airbag packager may include, atleast, all of the service as those described above in connection withthe dealer. As a consequence, the airbag packager may be presented withthe same or similar pages presented in FIGS. 2-9. The process may besimilar as well. Specifically, the airbag packager may enter informationregarding the airbag that is being packaged. This allows one additionalstatus to be placed in the airbag confirmation page (FIG. 5, 505) by theairbag packager before installation of the airbag in a vehicle. Arepairman or vehicle manufacturer, using the system (FIG. 1, 100), maythen change the status from “packaged” to “installed” when they placethe received airbag in a vehicle. In one example, the packager may alsobe the OEM or a parts provider who had received the packaged airbag fromthe OEM. In either case, a recipient of the packaged airbag, once he orshe provides the system (FIG. 1, 100) with the airbag identification,may know that the airbag had yet to be used and can be assured that thereceived airbag is not a black-market airbag. In one example, the airbagpackager may be presented with an airbag packaged confirmation pageinstead of the replace airbag confirmation page (FIG. 6, 605) asdescribed above. Because the airbag packager is not associating theairbag with a vehicle, the status is automatically updated as“packaged.” The airbag packager may then shown a confirmation page suchas the review page (FIG. 6, 635) and then be directed to scan anotherairbag for packaging.

With referencing FIGS. 1-9, a number of graphical user interface pagespresented to a user of the system such as original equipmentmanufacturer (OEM) will now be described. The OEM may also be presentedwith the pages presented in FIG. 2. Specifically, the OEM may enterlogin information into initial login page (FIG. 2, 205) in order to gainaccess to the services provided by the system (FIG. 1, 100). Theservices provided to the OEM may include, at least, all of the serviceas those described above in connection with the dealer. As aconsequence, the OEM may be presented with the same or similar pagespresented in FIGS. 2-9. The process may be similar as well.Specifically, the OEM may enter either information regarding the vehiclethat is having an airbag recalled or information regarding the airbag tobe recalled. The OEM may further be provided with information to confirmthe airbags present in a vehicle and the ability to choose which ofthose airbags are being recalled. Still further, the OEM may bepresented with the ability to confirm that an airbag was marked asrecalled and receive a confirmation page that the airbag and vehicledata has been updated in the parts database (FIG. 1, 140). Stillfurther, the OEM may enter information on a history report query page(FIG. 3, 325) to receive information regarding the airbag history of anysingle vehicle or type of vehicle.

An OEM may use the system (FIG. 1, 100) to send out a recall notice toall owners, dealers, and repairers of vehicles associated with therecalled airbags. In this example, the system (FIG. 1, 100) may providethe OEM with the ability to contact, at least, the dealer who is sellingor who has sold the vehicle. The dealer may then be directed to contactthe owner so that the owner may come in to have the airbag replaced asdescribed above. Still further, the system may allow the OEM to ship areplacement airbag to that dealer for them to replace the recalledairbag with. All of the email information, VIN information, addressinformation, and contact information of the owner of the vehicle mayalso be stored in a portion of the parts database (140) reserved forsuch information. The OEM may also be able to determine which airbagsthat were subjected to the recall have or have not been replacedproviding the OEM with specifics as to the effectiveness of the recall.This may allow the OEM to take further measure to assure that thoserecalled airbags are not present in any vehicle. Still further, a reportmay be presented to the OEM for compliance with any governmentrequirements such as recall compliance.

The OEM may be incentivized to use the system (FIG. 1, 100) in order toprotect the OEM and it customers from any potential harm or litigationthat might result from the use of the recalled airbags. Additionally,the use of the system (FIG. 1, 100) may also streamline the interactionbetween the OEM and its customers by confirming to the OEM and thecustomer that the appropriate airbags were recalled and replaced withnew airbags. Other advantages may also be realized by the OEM includingease of record keeping and convenience of having a greater amount ofinformation regarding any vehicle and the airbags associated with thosevehicles.

With referencing FIGS. 1-9, a number of graphical user interface pagespresented to a user of the system such as a supplier of originalequipment from the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) will now bedescribed. The supplier may also be presented with the pages presentedin FIG. 2. Specifically, the supplier may enter login information intoinitial login page (FIG. 2, 205) in order to gain access to the servicesprovided by the system (FIG. 1, 100). The services provided to thesupplier may include, at least, all of the service as those describedabove in connection with the packager. As a consequence, the suppliermay be presented with the same or similar pages presented in FIGS. 2-9.The process may be similar as well. Specifically, the supplier may enterinformation regarding the airbag that is packaged. This allows oneadditional status to be placed in the airbag confirmation page (FIG. 5,505) by the supplier before installation of the airbag in a vehicle. Arepairman or vehicle manufacturer, using the system (FIG. 1, 100), maythen change the status from “packaged” to “installed” when they placethe received airbag in a vehicle. In this example, a recipient of thepackaged airbag from the supplier, once he or she provides the system(FIG. 1, 100) with the airbag identification, may know that the airbaghad yet to be used and can be assured that the received airbag is not ablack-market airbag. In one example, the supplier may be presented withan airbag packaged confirmation page instead of the replace airbagconfirmation page (FIG. 6, 605) as described above. Because the supplieris not associating the airbag with a vehicle, the status isautomatically updated as “packaged.” In another example, a new statusmay be entered indicating that the airbag is both packaged and shipped.The supplier may then be shown a confirmation page such as the reviewpage (FIG. 6, 635) and then be directed to scan another airbag forshipping.

Turning now to FIG. 11, a diagram showing an account details pagepresented to a user of the system according to one example of theprinciples described herein is shown. The accounts detail page (1105)provides a user of the system with details regarding his or her serviceaccount. The system (FIG. 1, 100) may be provided to a user as a cost ofthe service. In one example, the service provided may be as a daily,weekly, monthly or yearly subscription. In this example, the user mayaccess the system (FIG. 1, 100) and its associated data at any time andwithout restrictions. In exchange, the user pays money for thesubscription period. In another example, the services provided by thesystem (FIG. 1, 100) may be provided on a click-by-click basis. In thisexample, the user may be charged or paid each time a button is actuatedon the pages described below and in connection with FIGS. 2-9 and 11.Alternatively, a user may be charged each time data from the partsdatabase (140) is accessed and provided to the user. In this example,the user is charged for an amount of data accessed.

In order to allow for user flexibility, the accounts detail page (1105)may comprise a change subscription button (1110). The user may actuatethis button in order to change from a click-by-click subscription to aterm subscription or visa-versa as described above. In another example,a payout or commission may be presented to those persons or entities whoreport defective bags and/or return those defective bags to themanufacturer or the proper disposal site. In this example, such a usermay be allowed access to the system (100) for free and paid by anyinterested party to seek out and find those airbags that are defectiveand report them using a device connected to the system (100). In theseexamples described above, a user may be presented with cost advantagesas well that described his or her previous system (FIG. 1, 100) usagedata as well as a cost/benefit analysis as to whether a change in theuser's subscription is advised in light of that usage data.

The accounts detail page (1105) may further comprise a balancestatements button (1115). Actuation of the balance statements buttonallows a user to access data associated with payments made by the userfor user of the system (FIG. 1, 100). Specifically, the user may beallowed to access past payments, review current balance owed to theoperator of the system (FIG. 1, 100) and dates on which the payment isdue. Here the user may further be provided to preemptively pay an amountof money in anticipation for use of the system (FIG. 1, 100). Stillfurther, the user may set up the system (FIG. 1, 100) to automaticallywithdrawal or charge an account so that service will not lapse betweenpayments. To do so, the user may provide secure information to thesystem (FIG. 1, 100) which gives authorization to access a money orcredit account.

If the user was on a click-by-click subscription as described above, theuser may further be provided details about access to the system (FIG. 1,100) after actuation of the balance statements button (1115). In thiscase, the user may review all activity on his or her account on a day byday basis as well as be provided the option to print out the details ofthe services accessed on the system (FIG. 1, 100).

The accounts detail page (1105) may further direct the user to thechange password page (219) or to an edit account details page. Each ofthese pages further allows the user to change settings on his or heraccount in order to provide up-to-date details about the user. In oneexample, the user may deliberately access the change password page (219)in an attempt to prevent another authorized user from accessing thesystem (FIG. 1, 100). In another example, the user may access an editaccount details page in order to update an email address, a physicaladdress, a phone number, a credit card number, and n account type, amongothers.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing a method (1000) of tracking an airbagaccording to one example of principles described herein. The method(1000) may begin with collecting (1005) data associated with a specificairbag. As described above, this data may include the family of airbagsthe particular airbag belongs to, the vehicle the airbag is installedon, the manufacturing date of the airbag, the barcode associated withthe number, the serial number associated with the airbag, themanufacturer of the airbag, the manufacturing date of the airbag, andthe destruction date of the airbag, among others. This data may compriseany data descriptive data from when it was manufactured to when it wasdestroyed between those two periods.

The method (1000) may further comprise storing (1010) the collected dataon a parts database (FIG. 1, 140). The parts database may comprise thecollected data that, along with some data associated with the airbag,also comprises data associated with each user of the system (FIG. 1,100). For example, the stored data may further comprise the name of theuser, user login information, history information associated with theuser's use of the system (FIG. 1, 100), user vehicle VIN, user address,user phone number, and other identifying information associated with theuser and the user's activities on the system (FIG. 1, 100).

The method (1000) may further comprise receiving (1015) updated airbagstatus data. The updated airbag status data comprises those changes madeby the users as to the status of the airbag as described above.Specifically, the updated airbag status data may comprise an update froma “manufactured” status to a “packaged” status; a “packaged” status to a“delivered” status; a “delivered” status to an “installed” status; an“installed” status to a “damaged” status; an “installed” status to a“deployed” status; a “damaged” status to a “destroyed” status; a“deployed” status to a “destroyed” status; or combinations thereof. Theupdating of the status by each user allows a subsequent user of thesystem (FIG. 1, 100) to know at what point in the lifecycle of theairbag that particular airbag is in.

The method (1000) may further comprise providing (1020) the collecteddata and status data to a user of the system (FIG. 1, 100) via the userinterface such as the user device interface (FIG. 1, 145-1, 145-2,145-3, 145-4, 145-5). The user device may provide each user with a setof user interface pages based on the type of user that user is. Asdescribed above, some users may be more functionally limited than someother users implementing the system (FIG. 1, 100). For example, someusers may be allowed to change the status data associated with an airbagwhile others may not be allowed. In one example, the extent of thefunctionality of the system (FIG. 1, 100) may be dependent on whetherthe user provided the system with qualifying information that allows theuser to access and change data on the system. In another example, theextent of the functionality of the system (FIG. 1, 100) may be dependenton the level of services paid for by the user.

Aspects of the present system and method are described herein withreference to flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods,apparatus (systems) and computer program products according to examplesof the principles described herein. Each block of the flowchartillustrations and block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in theflowchart illustrations and block diagrams, may be implemented bycomputer usable program code. The computer usable program code may beprovided to a processor of a general purpose computer, special purposecomputer, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce amachine, such that the computer usable program code, when executed via,for example, the processor of the computer (110-1 through 110-5) orother programmable data processing apparatus, implement the functions oracts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks. Inone example, the computer usable program code may be embodied within acomputer readable storage medium; the computer readable storage mediumbeing part of the computer program product.

The computer readable storage medium may comprise computer usableprogram code to, when executed by a processor, collects data associatedwith a specific airbag. The computer readable storage medium may furthercomprise computer usable program code to, when executed by a processor,store the collected data on a parts database, receive updated airbagstatus data, and provide the collected data and status data to a user ofthe system (FIG. 1, 100). The computer usable program code may, in oneexample, further provide a graphical user interface such that a user mayinteract with, for example, a webpage in order to interact with thesystem and the pages described in FIGS. 2-9. In one example, the server(FIG. 1, 105) may provide the computer usable program code to each ofthe number of user devices (110-1 through 110-5) such that each numberof user devices (110-1 through 110-5) is presented with the pagesdescribed herein.

The specification and figures describe a system and method for trackingan airbag. The system (FIG. 1, 100) may provide a number of types ofusers with the ability to track the status of an airbag as the airbag ismoved from manufacturing to destruction. As the lifecycle of the airbagproceeds from the manufacturing, it is helpful to track the airbag viaVIN or airbag number in order to determine if that airbag is safe forfurther consumption on the market. The system further provides a methodand system to quickly and efficiently institute a recall processassociated with a number of airbags. Still further the present systemand method allows a number of different types of user to determine whenan airbag should be destroyed. Still further, due to the environmentaland physical dangers associated with the chemicals used in an airbag,the present system further provides for the appropriate disposal andmonitoring of any airbag that has been manufactured.

The preceding description has been presented to illustrate and describeexamples of the principles described. This description is not intendedto be exhaustive or to limit these principles to any precise formdisclosed. Many modifications and variations are possible in light ofthe above teaching.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system of tracking an airbag, comprising: aserver; a parts database communicatively coupled to the server; and anumber of user devices communicatively coupled to the server; in whichthe server collects data associated with the airbag, the data associatedwith the airbag describing a family of airbags the airbag belongs to asa member, and providing alerts to a status of the airbag to the serverbased on statuses of each of the family member airbags, wherein thealerts are provided when at least one of the user devices scans anidentification of a family member airbag alerting a user of the airbagthat the status of the airbag has changed because the status of a familymember airbag has changed; and in which the server receives andautomatically updates status data associated with the family of airbagsin the parts database when the status of the family member airbag isupdated from the at least one of user devices.
 2. The system of claim 1,in which the parts database stores the collected data and in which thecollected data comprises data associated with a user of the system anddata associated with the airbag.
 3. The system of claim 2, in which thedata associated with a user of the system comprises the name of theuser, user login information, history information associated with theuser's use of the system, user vehicle VIN, user address, user phonenumber, or combinations thereof.
 4. The system of claim 1, in which thedata associated with the airbag comprises the vehicle the airbag isinstalled in, the manufacturing date of the airbag, the barcodeassociated with the airbag, the serial number associated with theairbag, the manufacturer of the airbag, the manufacturing date of theairbag, the destruction date of the airbag, or combinations thereof. 5.The system of claim 1, in which the system provides the collected dataand the status data to a user of the system on a number of pages in agraphical user interface associated with one of the user devices.
 6. Thesystem of claim 5, in which the system receives from a number of usersupdated status data via the graphical user interface.
 7. The system ofclaim 6, in which the updated status data comprises a “packaged” status,a “delivered” status, an “installed” status, a “damaged” status, a“deployed” status, or a “destroyed” status.
 8. The system of claim 6, inwhich the ability of the user to update the status data is dependentupon a type of user the system has associated the user as.
 9. The systemof claim 8, in which the type of user may comprise a car dealer, arepairman, a law enforcement officer, an insurance agent, a recycler, amember of the public, a packager of the airbag, an original equipmentmanufacturer (OEM), or a distributor of the OEM's airbag.
 10. The systemof claim 8, in which the system requests confirming information as tothe type of user the system is to associate the user as.
 11. A method oftracking an airbag via the system of claim 1, comprising: collectingdata associated with a specific airbag; storing the collected data on aparts database; receiving updated airbag status data; and providing thecollected data and status data to a user.
 12. The method of claim 11, inwhich the collected data associated with the airbag comprises datadescribing a vehicle into which the airbag is installed.
 13. The methodof claim 12, in which the collected data associated with the airbagcomprises data associating the airbag with other airbags installed inthe vehicle.
 14. The method of claim 11, in which the parts databasestores the collected data and in which the collected data comprises andin which the data associated with a user of the system comprises thename of the user, user login information, history information associatedwith the user's use of the system, user vehicle VIN, user address, userphone number, or combinations thereof.
 15. The method of claim 11, inwhich providing the collected data and status data to a user comprisesproviding the collected data and the status data to a user via a numberof pages in a graphical user interface associated with a user device.16. The method of claim 11, in which receiving updated airbag statusdata comprises receiving a number of users updated status data via thegraphical user interface of a user computing device.
 17. The method ofclaim 16, in which the ability of the user to update the status data isdependent upon a type of user the system has associated the user as. 18.A computer program product for tracking an airbag operating on theserver of claim 1, the computer program product comprising: a computerreadable storage medium comprising computer usable program code embodiedtherewith, the computer usable program code comprising: computer usableprogram code to, when executed by a processor, collect the dataassociated with a specific airbag; computer usable program code to, whenexecuted by a processor, store the collected data on a parts database;computer usable program code to, when executed by a processor, receivethe updated airbag status data; and computer usable program code to,when executed by a processor, provide the collected data and status datato a user.
 19. The computer program product of claim 18, furthercomprising computer usable program code to, when executed by aprocessor, provide the collected data and the status data to a user viaa number of pages in a graphical user interface associated with a userdevice.
 20. The computer program product of claim 18, further comprisingcomputer usable program code to, when executed by a processor, receive anumber of users updated status data via the graphical user interface ofa user computing device.
 21. A system of tracking an airbag, comprising:a server; a parts database communicatively coupled to the server; and anumber of user devices communicatively coupled to the server; in whichthe server collects data associated with the airbag, the data associatedwith the airbag originating from one of the number of user devices aftera scan of an identification of the airbag and describing a destructiondate of the airbag; wherein the collected data further comprises datadescribing a number of familiarly related airbags the airbag isassociated with; and in which the server receives and automaticallyupdates status data associated with the airbag in the parts databasewhen the data associated with the airbag is collected; and in which eachof a status of each of the number of familiarly related airbags isupdated automatically by the server when it has been determined by theserver that the updated status of the airbag detrimentally effects thestatus of each of the number of familiarly related airbags; an alert ofthe status change to each of the number of familiarly related airbagsbeing sent out from the server.
 22. A system of tracking an airbag,comprising: a server; a parts database communicatively coupled to theserver; and a number of user devices communicatively coupled to theserver; in which the server collects data associated with a family ofairbags of which the airbag is a member; and in which the serverreceives and updates, in the parts database, status data associated withthe airbag from a user using a first of the number of user devices basedon a status change of any one of the other airbags of the family ofairbags, the ability of the user to update the status data beingdependent upon a type of user associated to the user by the system; andin which the server broadcasts an alert regarding each of the otherairbags in the family of airbags to any one of the number of userdevices indicating the status of the airbag and, consequently, thestatus of the other airbags of the family of airbags has been changed.